Horn shaped rearview mirror with supplemental a mirror

ABSTRACT

A horn shaped rearview mirror assembly for vehicles is disclosed including a support structure for mounting the mirror assembly to the vehicle, and a support arm including a carrier structure having a vehicle end and a free end, the vehicle end connected to the support structure. The support arm also includes a molded component secured to the carrier structure, the molded component including a mirror housing. A main rearview mirror is affixed to the mirror housing for providing the driver a rearview of the vehicle, and a single supplemental mirror is affixed to the mirror housing above the main mirror for providing the driver a view of at least two dead zones disposed about the vehicle.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention concerns a horn shaped rear view mirror assembly forcommercial vehicles, in particular, for buses.

For buses, more and more attention-getting mirror designs are beingemployed. At least one of these shows a mirror construction installedfar forward, extending outwardly from the upper ends of the A-columns ofthe bus body. In the case of these outlying designs—the so-called “hornmirrors”—a main mirror and supplementary mirrors are integrated for thedriver's supervision of the entry area and the front zone which is notvisible to the said driver.

A representation of such a horn shaped rearview mirror assembly has beenbrought into public knowledge by DE-44 29 604 A1. Another such hornshaped rearview mirror assembly is known from EP-A-0 865 967. The latterencompasses a support arm, mountable on the vehicle body having acarrying tubular structure as the basic element, a main mirror in ahousing fastened on the free end of the tubular structure, and anadvantageous motorized, adjustable mirror pane located in said housing.Further, EP-A-0 865 967 discloses a molded component, which supportssupplementary mirrors and envelopes as a cover the tubular structurebetween its body end and the main mirror.

In this known rearview mirror assembly, the main mirror with its housingand the support arm with the molded component, along with the thereinintegrated supplementary mirror, make up two separate constructioncomponents, which are connected with one another. This two-partstructure leads to certain limitations in the design of such horn shapedrearview mirrors and likewise leads to a sectional structure. Moreover,the mounting of such a horn shaped mirror becomes complex through themulti-part assembly.

OBJECTIVES AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Thus it is the purpose of the present invention to bring the known hornshaped rearview mirror of EP-A-0 865 967 into a more compact form.

The achievement of this purpose is accomplished through the features ofthe present invention.

In accord with the invention, the housing of the main mirror isintegrated into the molded component, and the main mirror and at leastone supplementary mirror are mounted in a single mirror head. By meansof dispensing with the separation between the main mirror and thesupplemental mirror a compact and elegant mirror design is possible. Thecompact form with a mirror head possesses also additional advantages,since whistling noise engendered by the wind while traveling is avoided.Such noise can occur in the two-part design in accord with the presentstate of the technology. Also, in the matter of the air resistance, thisis improved by the more compact mirror head.

In accord with a preferred embodiment of the invention, a singlesupplementary mirror is provided for the monitoring of the zone in frontof the vehicle and the zones left and right between the forward end ofthe vehicle and the front axle of the vehicle. In this way, by means ofone mirror, the function of the previous two mirrors is taken over andat the same time a more compact construction is made possible. Further,from the use of one instead of two supplementary mirrors, a substantialergonomical advantage arises, since now only one supplementarymirror—for two dead angle zones—and one main mirror need be observed.

According to one advantageous aspect, the invention provides asimplified form of the supplementary mirror, with which two differentdead angle zones can be monitored.

In accord with a further advantageous aspects of the invention, a coverof the molded component is provided. By means of this cover, first, themolded part with the parts located thereunder are protected, and second,these covers are then lacquered to match the vehicle color.

In accord with another advantageous aspect of the invention, on themirror head a peripherally encompassing water dispersing rim isprovided. Water and dirt, in the case of rainy weather, are prevented bythis water dispersing rim from being transported onto the mirror surfaceby the wind during travel.

In accord with a yet another aspect of the invention, the mirrorassembly is so conceived, that the mirror assembly can be caused to foldforward in the direction of the windshield, or fold backwards in thedirection of the side windows. With this measure, the mirrors need notbe dismounted during the use of drive-thru wash machines.

In accord with yet another aspect of the invention, the mirror assembly,in accord with the invention, is mountable on the vehicle by means of aclamping mechanism, which makes possible a simple demounting, i.e.removal of the mirror assembly from the vehicle. This clamping mechanismis the object of an Application submitted on the same day as thepresently submitted Application (Patent Attorney's file designation:P/11ML0309/DE), U.S. application Ser. No. 09/302,822, now U.S. Pat. No.6,352,231, regarding which, full cognizance will be taken in the presentinstrument.

Further advantageous aspects of the invention will be found in theremaining subordinate claims.

Further features, details and advantages of the invention are providedin the subsequent description of a preferred embodiment made with theaid of the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

There is shown in:

FIG. 1 a general view in an exploded presentation of an advantageousembodiment of the invention,

FIG. 2 an exploded view of the clamping mechanism for the mirror shownin FIG. 1,

FIG. 3a a side view of the mirror corresponding to FIG. 1,

FIG. 3b a top view of the mirror corresponding to FIG. 1,

FIG. 4a a top view of a preferred shape of the supplementary mirror,

FIG. 4b a sectional view of the supplementary mirror taken along thesection line A—A of FIG. 4a,

FIG. 5a side view of the adjustment and folding apparatus of the mirrorassembly in accord with the present invention,

FIG. 5b a sectional view of the elements shown in FIG. 5a, parallel tothe plane of the drawing in FIG. 5a, and

FIG. 6 a top diagrammatical view of a vehicle showing locations of deadzones relative to a vehicle made visible by the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Reference will now be made in detail to the presently preferredembodiments of the invention, one or more examples of which areillustrated in the Figures. Each example is provided by way ofexplanation of the invention, and not meant as a limitation of theinvention. For example, features illustrated or described as part of oneembodiment can be used on another embodiment to yield yet anotherembodiment. It is intended that the present invention include suchmodifications and variations.

FIGS. 1 and 2 show in perspective, a preferred embodiment of the hornshaped rearview mirror in accord with the present invention, having asupport structure 2 for the mirror assembly mounted either left or righton a vehicle v (see FIG. 6). The support structure 2 is connected to asupport arm 4.

On the other end of the support arm 4, the main mirror 8 and thesupplementary mirror 10 are placed in a common housing or mirror head 6.Support arm 4 and mirror head 6 are comprised of a foamed moldedcomponent 12, which is penetrated by a (not shown in detail in FIG. 1)carrier structure 13, as this is also presented in EP-A-0 865 967. Inthis matter, reference is to be made to said EP-A-0 865 967. The vehicleend of the carrier structure 13 is to be seen in FIGS. 5a and 5 b. Mainmirror 8 and supplementary mirror 10 are mounted in the common housing,i.e. mirror head 6, on corresponding adjustment apparatuses 14 and 16.The mirror head 6 is covered for protection from the direction of travelby means of the cover 18, which may be lacquered in the same color asthe vehicle.

In FIGS. 3a and 3 b is shown a peripherally disposed water dispersionrim 20 on the mirror head 6. This water dispersion rim 20 prevents thewind due to traveling from driving water and dirt upon the surfaces ofthe main mirror 8 and supplementary mirror 10.

FIG. 4a shows a plan view of the supplementary mirror 10, and FIG. 4bshows a section along the section line A—A in FIG. 4a. The supplementarymirror 10 is domed, trapezoidal in shape and possesses rounded offcorners. This shape assures that the supplementary mirror 10 allows themonitoring of two dead angle zones, namely the zone 60 in front of thevehicle and the zone on the sides of the vehicle 62, 64 between thefront end 66 and the forward axle 68 (see FIG. 6).

The vehicle end of the support arm 4 is connected to an adjustment andfolding apparatus 22, by means of which, the basic adjustment of themirror assembly can be made, and by means of which the mirror assemblycan be folded forward, that is, in the direction of the windshield, ortoward the rear, that is, in the direction of the side windows. Theadjustment and folding apparatus 22 includes a hinge pivot 24 with twopivoting arms, whereby one pivot arm is the vehicle end of the carryingstructure 13 and the other pivot arm is the insertable component 26 (seeFIGS. 5a and 5 b).

As may be seen in FIG. 5b, the hinge pivot 24 of the adjustment andfolding apparatus 22 is held together by a hinge bolt 28, whichpenetrates a cup spring 30 and stop-washers 32 and 33. The hinge bolt 28is fixed in place by two screws 34 and 35 located respectively, aboveand below said hinge bolt 28. The stop washers 32 and 33 are pressedagainst one another by the cup spring 30 whereby the mirror assembly isthus limited to a specified angular position.

The support structure 2 is made as a clamping assembly and is comprisedof the insertable component 26, on which a clamp wedge 36 is slidinglyaffixed, and a rectangular shaped clamp receptacle 38 is also thereonattached. The clamp receptacle 38 will be screwed on to the body of thevehicle. During the mounting of the mirror assembly, the insertablecomponent 26 is pushed into the clamp receptacle 38. The clamping wedge36 is firmly secured to the clamp receptacle 38 and the insertablecomponent 26 by clamping screws 40. The clamp wedge 36 is slidable in adirection at right angles to the entry direction of the insertablecomponent 26 into the clamp receptacle. By means of the sliding of theclamp wedge 36, the insertable component 26 is moved upward, and theclamp wedge 36 presses downward against the upper/lower limits of theclamp receptacle 38.

As shown in FIG. 2, for security, in addition, a snap-in detentarrangement is provided, which includes a snap-in, springlike element 42affixed to the clamp receptacle 38. This snap-in detent element 42protrudes through a corresponding penetrative opening 44 in the clampreceptacle 38.

Upon the insertion of the insertable component 26 into the clampreceptacle 38, the snap-in detent element 42 is retracted, i.e. pressedback, and seats itself in a corresponding recess in the insertablecomponent 26. The support structure 2 is covered by an upper and a lowercovering, respectively 48, 49 as well as a mounting cover 50. Themounting cover 50 covers the clamp screws 40 and the snap-in detentelement 42. In the case of demounting of the mirror assembly, moreexactly, regarding the demounting of the mirror head 6 with the supportarm 4, principally, the mounting cover 50 must be removed and the screwsloosened.

In FIG. 5a is shown a key-activated locking mechanism 52 which isdisposed on the clamp receptacle 38 and through which the insertablecomponent 26 is secured in the clamp receptacle 38. The locking devicepresents a safety measure against theft.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that variousmodifications and variations can be made in the present inventionwithout departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. It isintended that the present invention include such modifications andvariations as come within the scope of the appended claims and theirequivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A horn shaped rearview mirror assembly for avehicle, the rearview mirror assembly comprising: a support structurefor mounting the mirror assembly to the vehicle; a support arm includinga carrier structure having a vehicle end and a free end, the vehicle endconnected to the support structure, the support arm also including amolded component secured to the carrier structure, the molded componentincluding a mirror housing; a key activated locking apparatus disposedon the support structure for selectively locking the support arm to thevehicle; a main rearview mirror affixed to the mirror housing forproviding a driver of the vehicle a rearview of the vehicle; and onlyone supplemental mirror affixed to the mirror housing above the mainmirror for providing the driver a direct view of at least two dead zonesdisposed about the vehicle.
 2. A rearview mirror assembly as in claim 1,wherein the supplemental mirror is configured to provide a view of adead zone in front of the vehicle and a dead zone on the side of thevehicle between the front end of the vehicle and the front axle of thevehicle.
 3. A rearview mirror assembly as in claim 2, wherein thesupplemental mirror includes a domed mirror surface having a perimetersubstantially in the form of a trapezoid.
 4. A rearview mirror assemblyas in claim 1, wherein the main mirror and the supplemental mirror areadjustable by electric motors.
 5. A rearview mirror assembly as in claim1, wherein the mirror housing has a forward side, and further includinga cover which protects the forward side.
 6. A rearview mirror assemblyas in claim 5, wherein the cover is of one piece.
 7. A rearview mirrorassembly as in claim 5, wherein the mirror housing includes a waterdispersing rim.
 8. A rearview mirror assembly as in claim 1, wherein thecarrier structure is a tubular structure and the molded component is afoamed molded component comprised of a two-component material.
 9. Arearview mirror assembly as in claim 1, further including an adjustmentmechanism attached to the support arm, the adjustment mechanismconfigured to allow the support arm to be pivoted relative to thevehicle.
 10. A rearview mirror assembly as in claim 1, wherein, thesupport structure includes a clamping mechanism housing a clampreceptacle affixed to the vehicle, an insertable component inserted intothe clamp receptacle in an inserting direction, and a slidably installedclamping wedge on the insertable component, the wedge, upon pushing ofthe insertable component, clampingly locks the insertable component andthe clamping wedge to the clamp receptacle.
 11. A rearview mirrorassembly as in claim 10, wherein the clamping wedge is slidable on theinsertable component in a direction at right angles to the insertingdirection of the insertable component.
 12. A rearview mirror assembly asin claim 10, wherein the clamp receptacle is a rectangular shaped tubesegment.
 13. A rearview mirror assembly as in claim 10, wherein thesupport structure includes a snap-in detent apparatus.
 14. A rearviewmirror assembly as in claim 13, wherein the snap-in detent apparatusincludes a snap-in spring element affixed to the clamp receptacle andwhich snaps into a corresponding recess in the insertable component. 15.A rearview mirror assembly as in claim 10, wherein the clamping wedge ismovable in a clamping direction by clamping screws.
 16. A rearviewmirror assembly as in claim 15, wherein the clamping screws are screwedinto tapped borings in the clamp receptacle.
 17. A horn shaped rearviewmirror assembly for a vehicle, the rearview mirror assembly comprising:a support structure for mounting the mirror assembly to the vehicle; asupport arm including a carrier structure having a vehicle end and afree end, the vehicle end connected to the support structure, thesupport arm also including a molded component secured to the carrierstructure, the molded component including a mirror housing; a keyactivated locking mechanism disposed on the support structure forselectively locking the support arm to the vehicle; a main rearviewmirror affixed to the mirror housing for providing a driver of thevehicle a rearview of the vehicle; and only one supplemental mirroraffixed to the mirror housing above the main mirror for providing thedriver a direct view of a first dead zone in front of the vehicle and asecond dead zone on the side of the vehicle between the front end of thevehicle and the front axle of the vehicle.
 18. A rearview mirrorassembly as in claim 17, wherein the supplemental mirror includes adomed mirror surface having a perimeter substantially in the form of atrapezoid.
 19. A rearview mirror assembly as in claim 17, wherein thecarrier structure is a tubular structure and the molded component is afoamed molded component comprised of a two-component material.